(a) the details of the goods included under Indian Exports at present;

(b) the details of the other goods included under the Exports head during the last three years; and

(c) the steps taken by the Government to further diversify the list of goods under the Exports head?

ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (INDEPENDENT CHARGE)
(SMT. NIRMALA SITHARAMAN)

(a) All goods can be exported barring a few, which are prohibited/restricted under the Foreign Trade Policy and listed under ITC(HS) Classification of Export and Import. The complete list is available on the website of DGFT (www.dgft.gov.in). The prohibition/restriction on export is to ensure (i) availability of the commodities for domestic use/consumption at reasonable prices (ii) to safeguard natural resources & environment and (iii) to take care of proliferation concerns.

(b) Review of export/import policy is a continuous process undertaken by the Government from time to time in consultation with the concerned administrative Ministries / Departments, keeping in view the availability of the products, their prices in the domestic and international market and various other factors and need based policy decisions are taken from time to time in this regard.

(c) The Government has taken various measures to diversify and boost exports from India, which includes;

(i) Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS) was included under Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) 2015-20 w.e.f. April 1, 2015 as a major export promotion scheme implemented by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry with an objective to incentivize export of merchandise which are produced/manufactured in India. Rewards under MEIS are payable as a percentage of realized FOB value of exports of notified product / tariff lines, by way of the MEIS duty credit scrip, which are transferable and can also be used for payment of a number of duties including the basic customs duty. As of now 7914 tariff lines at 8 digit ITC (HS) Codes have been covered under MEIS scheme to diversify goods and market and to extend the coverage across the globe. For the fiscal year 2016-17, Rs. 23,500 Crore have been allocated for MEIS incentives.

(ii) Interest Equalization Scheme has been introduced w.e.f. 01.04.2015 for five years with an objective to provide affordable credit to exporters to enable them to be more competitive. The scheme is available to 416 specified tariff lines and exports made by manufacturing Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) across all ITC(HS) Codes. The rate of interest equalization is 3 % per annum.

(iii) In addition, the FTP 2015-2020 provide support for manufacture and export of commodities. Under Duty Exemption Scheme, duty free import of inputs can be made for manufacturing and exports. Under the Export Promotion Capital Goods Scheme, capital goods can be imported at zero percent duty linked to export performance to be achieved within six years from the date of imports. A manufacturer setting up an Export Oriented Unit (EOU) for exports also has access to duty free imports of raw material and capital goods.

(iv) Various Export Promotion Councils and Commodity Boards also make efforts in promotion of export of their commodities including diversification.